This invention relates to a system for cooling of fluid, and more particularly to a tank-type fluid cooling system in which fluid is cooled as it flows through the tank.
Various cooling tank constructions are known in the prior art. For example, it is known to provide a cooling tank having elongated U-shaped cooling elements, in which the tank defines a flow path including a first vertical portion and a second vertical portion, with a leg of each cooling element being disposed in one of the vertical flow path portions. The fluid first flows downwardly through the first flow path portion then upwardly through the second flow path portion, being cooled by the cooling elements during fluid flow. The fluid is then discharged from the second flow path portion. Other patents disclose heat exchanger systems in which a series of cooling tubes extend through a tank, with cooled fluid being supplied to the cooling tubes. Heated fluid to be cooled is supplied to the portion of the tank through which the cooling tubes extend, and flows past the cooling tubes to cool the fluid prior to discharge from the tank.
It is an object of the present invention to provide-a fluid cooling system utilizing flow of fluid through a vessel to cool the fluid, with the vessel operating in a simple and efficient manner to cool the fluid during fluid flow therethrough. It is a further object of the invention to provide a fluid cooling system which functions to prevent flashing upon contact of the fluid with the fluid cooling elements associated with the fluid cooling system. Yet another object of the invention is to provide a tank-type cooling system capable of holding a quantity of cooled fluid prior to discharge of the cooled fluid from the tank.
In accordance with the invention, a fluid cooling system includes a vessel which defines a first cavity and a second cavity separated by a wall. The vessel includes an inlet for introducing heated fluid to the first cavity and an outlet for discharging cooled fluid from the second cavity. One or more cooling tubes are disposed within the vessel, with each cooling tube defining an internal passage and having one or more inlet openings establishing communication between the first cavity and the cooling tube internal passage. Each cooling tube further defines an outlet establishing communication between the cooling tube internal passage and the second cavity. A cooling assembly is incorporated into the system, and includes a series of elongated cooling elements which extend into and partially through the cooling tube internal passage. With this arrangement, the heated fluid is first introduced into the first cavity, and then into the inlet of the cooling tube. The fluid then flows through the internal passage of the cooling tube to be cooled, and the cooled fluid is discharged into the second cavity. The cooled fluid passing through the cooling tube functions to pre-cool the heated fluid which surrounds the cooling tube in the first cavity, and the heated fluid introduced into the first cavity through the inlet is mixed with the pre-cooled fluid prior to passage of the fluid into the cooling tube inlets. In this manner, the hot inlet fluid is not introduced directly to the cooling elements, so as to prevent the fluid from flashing when it initially contacts the cooling elements.
In accordance with other aspects of the invention, the first and second cavities defined by the vessel are in the form of upper and lower cavities separated by a transverse wall located within the vessel. The one or more cooling tubes extend between the upper end of the upper cavity through the transverse wall, in a substantially vertical direction. The one or more inlet openings of each cooling tube are located toward the upper end of each cooling tube, and the vessel inlet is located toward the lower end of the upper cavity adjacent the transverse wall. In this manner, the hot inlet fluid is routed upwardly through the upper cavity to the cooling tube inlet openings, for thoroughly mixing with the pre-cooled fluid prior to entrance into the cooling tube inlet openings. The upper extent of the upper cavity is defined by an upper transverse wall of the vessel, and the one or more cooling tubes extend downwardly through the one or more openings in the transverse upper vessel wall. The cooling elements extend from a cooling head, and the cooling head is interconnected with the transverse upper vessel wall adjacent one of the openings to mount the cooling assembly to the vessel.
The invention further contemplates a method of cooling fluid during flow of fluid through a vessel, substantially in accordance with the foregoing summary.
Various other features, objects and advantages of the invention will be made apparent from the following description taken together with the drawings.